Your Favorite Coffee Flavors Taste Even Better as Coffee Smoothies

It’s that time of year: the flowers are blooming, the night is losing its chill, and the birds are filling the mornings with song. Soon, it will be summertime. We love the warm weather, but drinking hot coffee on an equally hot day isn’t necessarily the most refreshing experience. And yes, we’ve heard those dubious rumors that drinking a steaming cup of java on a hot day can actually cool you down, but our money’s on cold brew, or better yet, coffee smoothies! Coffee smoothies are the ideal warm-weather pick-me-up. They’re a frosty morning treat that will give you your daily jolt of caffeine, and you can mix in all sorts of healthy extras, taking your coffee smoothie to the next level.

Making a Coffee Smoothie? Start With Good Cold Brew

Any great coffee smoothie starts with good cold brew coffee. In a pinch, you can toss a spoon into the freezer and pour hot coffee over it to avoid melting all of your ice, but that only does so much. You still end up with tepid, watered-down cold brew. So let’s do this the right way. Though it requires some preparation, in the end, it’s totally worth it. Start the cold brew for your coffee smoothie the night before with your favorite coffee beans, coarse ground. Add 1 part beans to every four parts water, put the mixture in a mason jar, and whip that bad boy into the refrigerator. Now go to sleep. Yay! It’s tomorrow already. Get your mason jar out of the fridge, and use a fine strainer to filter out all the grounds. That’s it. Easy peasy. The first step of your coffee smoothie is complete!

It’s Coffee Chocolate Banana Smoothie Time

Now that you’ve made pro-level cold brew, you’re ready to make coffee smoothies. Let’s start with a classic: chocolate and bananas. Mix 16 oz of chocolate milk or soymilk with two ounces of that strong cold brew we just made. Add a big banana or two small ones into the mix. Toss in a tablespoon of chia seeds, and blend to perfection. Serves two.

Vanilla Protein Blaster, Including Coffee Smoothie!

This version of a coffee smoothie is an excellent pre-workout drink. Make your vanilla protein shake as usual. Hemp and soy protein will do in a pinch, but we find that whey provides optimum results for this recipe. Add two tablespoons of plain Greek yogurt for some extra muscle fuel, and blend in half a cup of cold brew. Bam! Your coffee smoothie just got pumped up!

Tropic Lightning Coffee Smoothies

For this coffee smoothie recipe, you’ll need a cup of pineapple chunks (canned or fresh), 5oz light coconut milk, 3oz cold brew, 1oz of water, and some ice cubes, just for extra frostiness. Blend it all together, and voila: a pina colada with some serious kick!

The Wicked Green Speed Machine

We know what you’re thinking: coffee smoothie that includes green juice? Come on. But don’t be frightened. This particular coffee smoothie is going to turn out great. Here’s what we’re tossing into the blender:

• A cup of cold brew
• Two cups of rainbow chard, juiced
• ¼ cup of rice milk
• Two heaping tablespoons raw cocoa powder
• Your sweetener of choice
• A dash of vanilla extract
• A tray full of ice cubes

Fire up the blender, and when you’re done, you’ll have a phytonutrient-rich super drink that will also give you a nice caffeine kick. We know this coffee smoothie might look a bit questionable, but just go with it. See? It’s great.